


your bloody rose

by prim_pomelo



Category: Gregory Horror Show
Genre: F/M, Post-Season/Series 02, Unhealthy Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-09
Updated: 2017-01-09
Packaged: 2018-09-09 19:08:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,103
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8908501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/prim_pomelo/pseuds/prim_pomelo
Summary: For their wedding anniversary, he gives her a gift.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Title's from [this song.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BI_0HIz_4JY)

Today marks their wedding anniversary.

She'd been making no effort to avoid her husband today; she just kept a faint hope to prolong the inevitable, that their paths wouldn't cross until later. Fortunately for her, she had managed to avoid running into him. And when she wanted to go out of their hotel for a smoke, he was no where to be found near the front desk.

Once she was out the doors, she fished out a pack of cigarettes from the pocket of her red jacket. She pulled a lighter from another pocket and made sure to tear her eyes away from the flame as she lit one of the sticks. She took a few puffs before deciding to move forward through the front graveyard, no particular destination in mind as she took long drags of her cigarette, and her mind began to drift just as aimlessly the rest of her.

_She hadn't thought much about possible wedding anniversaries when she'd been younger. She was always too busy with her studies, and then years later, work. Her mind had been far too occupied with her current task rather than something that seemed so far into the future. She'd have plenty of time to worry about weddings and anniversaries later._

_Eventually, her plentiful time ran out. The last man that she had a chance with left her. And she had to watch as that last chance at happiness said his vows to her best friend._

_She decided to take a taxi home after the wedding._

She exhaled a puff of smoke. Her hand shook ever so slightly. 

_In the end she'd gotten what she had wanted, right?_

_She'd never have to worry about her loved ones talking about how she needed to be married, about how the time on her clock was counting down._

She supposed she would never have to worry about her loved ones again, really.

_At first, the prospect of her permanent stay here and the man- no, not a man - she was tied to, had made her sorrowful, but quickly sorrow was replaced by red, hot flames of anger. It spread all throughout all of her. All she had was her rage, burning away her soul. She hated the world she was prisoner to, and she hated everyone else who occupied it. Especially her "husband"._

_The flames of hatred, as with all feelings, soon burned out, leaving her with a charred heart that began to wallow in bitterness. And of course, even the bitterness eventually faded._

_After a while, all of her pain was almost completely replaced with a bizarrely calm acceptance of her situation. Things were as they were, and no amount of rage or sorrow would change them._

_She was eternally bound to this place, to him._

_Him. Funny, at some point in her life here she had started to find it difficult to hate even him._

She wondered, dropping her spent cigarette onto the ground and lighting another, when did that happen?

Her mind started to travel down a different track.

_After her marriage, she tried to help others like her, other guests, always secretly hoping that they'd be able to escape. She knew that it was impossible to really, truly leave this place, she even told new guests as much._

_It would be far easier on them if they just gave up and gave in, unlike she did. Everybody always has to give up in the end, so why not just make it easier and spare your heart the pain of a struggle? She certainly wished she had._

Her thoughts were suddenly cut off when she took notice of the darkening sky above her. Odd, she could swear she'd only been walking for a few minutes. She turned around, squinting at the seemingly tiny hotel in the distance.

She threw her unfinished cigarette to the ground and stamped it out with a slender black boot.

Time to head back and face the inevitable.

* * *

Gregory doesn't even glance up when she pushes open the doors and walks in.

"You're back just in time for dinner," he says, flipping a page of the book he's reading.

She isn't surprised that he knows she left. Nothing about him surprises her anymore.

She gives no answer and walks past Gregory, slowing down when she hears the sound of him closing his book and then wooden creaking followed by a grunt of effort as he gets out of his chair. She waits and looks back at him, knowing that he's going to say more.

"If you aren't too busy, I'd like you to come to our room after dinner," the old rat grins, "I have something for you."

There it is.

She gives a hum of acknowledgement before Gregory joins her and they start to make their way to the kitchen together in silence.

Briefly, she wonders about what he's planned, but she's honestly too tired to care very much.

* * *

Gregory is facing away from her when she opens the door and enters their room.

"Ah," he turns around, and she instantly glances at the small box in his hands, "I wasn't entirely sure you'd come."

She came because there is nothing else for her to do. Even if she doesn't particularly enjoy her interactions with Gregory, she finds his company better than the absolute nothingness that the rest of this world has to offer.

She raises her eyebrow in a look of expectation towards him. She asks, "What do you want?" Her voice is flat, but the question is genuine.

"Well," the old rat shuffles towards her, a mischievous grin making its way across his face, "I decided to get you a little gift."

Silence.

His mischievous look falters for a moment, then Gregory quickly adds, "For our anniversary, my dear."

Her face is blank. She blinks slowly.

"Our wedding anniversary?" he tries. His ears even droop a little. "Surely you didn't forget, did you?"

And, okay, she has to hold back a chuckle at the genuine sounding pain in Gregory's voice and on his face when he speaks. She decides to be kind and answer him. "No, no, I remember."

She wants to laugh again when she sees the poorly suppressed look of relief come over him.

"Good, good," Gregory sighs. He clears his throat and straightens himself up a bit before starting to speak again, "Well..," he pauses and holds the little black box he has out to her, "open it." The skeptical look that she gives it makes him add, "I think you'll be pleasantly surprised."

She honestly doubts there's anything that can surprise her anymore, and Gregory's chuckle at the end of his sentence certainly does nothing to make her think it'll be pleasant.

She takes the dark box from the old rat's hands and slowly opens the top, preparing for anything.

Anything also included a plain, yet beautiful necklace.

She pulled it out of the box, examining it in the soft light emitting from the lamp on her nightstand.

The simple necklace had a fine gold chain connected to the center, a blood red rose, it looked as if it was possibly made from ruby.

Her chest ached at the sight of it, not just for its beauty, but the memories that it made resurface. The memories that it was supposed to make return to her. And suddenly there was that flicker again, a flicker of anger, the flicker that made her remember who her husband is. Who the only person she can have in this godforsaken world is.

_The memories of those first few nights._

She breathes in. She would kill for a cigarette.

_Memories of all the nights after._

Her hand shakes just slightly. Her lips form a thin line.

_Her youth, first love, heartbreak, her first job, love again, heartbreak again, a wedding that wasn't her own, a wedding that was, an endless string of heartbreaks._

And then the flicker of anger burned out just as quickly as it came, and she was dark and empty again. Alone.

_But she isn't really alone, is she?_

The concerned voice suddenly asking if she's alright reminds her of that.

She finds a strange sort of comfort in his worry, even if she's unsure in how genuine it is.

"I'm fine." Her voice is flat again.

Gregory looks suspiciously at her, but mutters a quiet "if you say so".

There's a thick silence.

She looks up at the old rat, "Why did you get this for me?"

"Huh?" He's taken off by the sudden question. "Well," he stops for a moment, "it's what you're supposed to do."

"So it's just because of a sense of obligation, huh?" She chuckles dryly.

There's a flicker of some emotion in Gregory's face that she can't place, before, in a second, it's gone. He remains silent.

Carefully, he asks, "Do you want to try it on, my dear?"

And she does, because she's just so sick and tired of anger and resistance.

Or, rather, she tries to put it on, but she can't quite clasp the lock. She hears Gregory speak behind her, too close to her ear, "May I?"

She hands the necklace to him and lifts her long, dark hair, because she's so weary, because she just wants someone to do something for her for once.

Gregory silently takes a hold of the golden chain.

He begins to wrap it around her neck, painfully slowly.

_Is it intentional?_

His hand brushes against the tan fur of her neck for just a short moment and she takes in a sharp, quiet breath. She's almost grateful that she doesn't have bare skin anymore, she wouldn't have been able to suppress the shudder that threatened to go throughout her body.

She isn't even sure of the reason why she shudders against his touch. It certainly isn't fear anymore.

_Then why is it?_

_...she's too tired to wonder._

"There."

She's broken away from her thoughts by Gregory's voice. She wills herself to not linger on the feeling of his breath on her neck.

She's thankful that he's finished and turns around, patiently waiting for the old rat to give his opinion of her looks. It doesn't matter to her what he says, she'll be happy with anything if it can end this strangely intimate moment.

He seems to assess her for a moment before his look softens, and he sighs, sounding almost entranced, "You look absolutely gorgeous, my dear."

She smiles a bit of a fake smile at Gregory. She doesn't think she'll ever be sure if any of his affection towards her is genuine.

_She isn't sure whether it's the idea of it being real or false that makes her chest tighten just the slightest bit. She tries to dismiss such thoughts._

There's a silence between them again, more uncomfortable than the others.

She realizes that something feels like it's missing, that someone needs to do or say something to truly conclude the night. It might as well be her.

'Obligation' is the only word that goes through her mind when she takes a step forward.

_He gave her a gift, she'll give him one as well. And neither of them will know if the gifts given and received are out of any real feelings, that's just how it is with them._

Gregory looks nervously at her for a moment.

"My dear?"

_She might as well treat him like a real husband for once. For their anniversary._

She stops for a moment and stares Gregory in the eyes.

"Thank you," she says.

"Ah," he starts, sounding relieved, "you're welco-"

She lunges forward before she can think twice about it and gives him a peck on the cheek, steps back, and turns around all in one quick motion. She starts to walk towards their bed.

"Happy anniversary, dear." Her hands move up to her necklace.

"Now," she manages to unclasp the lock with ease, "let's go to sleep."

She grins genuinely at the shocked face that she knows Gregory is making behind her as she gently places her necklace on the nightstand.

He's probably even blushing when he regains his composure and shuffles his way over to their bed. Who knows.

She doesn't know what she feels or what they are to each other, and honestly, she doesn't really care.

She tells herself she's too tired to think about it and goes to sleep.

* * *

_Her and Gregory dream of the same thing, oddly enough. They both dream of weddings and love with conflicted feelings towards it all._

_They'll have all the time in the world to figure those feelings out._

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> And there's my first serious fanfiction that I've actually finished. And it's about such a trash OTP. YAY ME.


End file.
